


Encounters: Leo and the Forsaken Man

by hummerhouse



Series: Encounters [11]
Category: Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (TV 2003)
Genre: Action, Character with dimentia, Gen, Memory Loss, Rescue, end of life issues
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-04-14
Updated: 2020-04-14
Packaged: 2021-03-01 18:28:58
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,129
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23641621
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/hummerhouse/pseuds/hummerhouse
Summary: Disclaimer: The TMNT are not mine. No money being made.Word Count: 3,149Summary: You can't live in a city of over 8 million people without interacting with a few of them.Rated: PG-13~One of a series of Encounters
Series: Encounters [11]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/632747
Comments: 17
Kudos: 38





	Encounters: Leo and the Forsaken Man

Leonardo enjoyed his early morning training runs immensely, despite one of them having been tainted by an ambush years earlier. It had taken him a while to recover from that, not just physically, but mentally and spiritually as well.

Being able to go out again, to run across rooftops by himself a few hours before dawn, was invigorating. The air was fresher, the city more tranquil, and the streets as deserted as they ever got being that this was New York City.

The route he’d run was a twenty-mile circular trek that started and ended in a quiet section of a quiet neighborhood. Before leaving the rooftops, Leo paused to look up at the sky and inhale deeply of air not tainted by the cloying smells of underground living.

He soon reached the alley where his entry into the sewers was located. Leo was just reaching for the manhole cover situated at the center of that alley, when he heard a familiar ‘tap, tap, tap’. It sounded very much like Master Splinter’s walking stick and curious, Leo slid back against the wall and approached the mouth of the alley.

Leo was just in time to see a slow moving figure turn a corner a couple of blocks ahead of him. Though there was nothing untoward in someone walking along the street, for some reason Leo felt misgivings about the person being out alone at this time of the morning.

Curious, he glanced around to be certain no one else was in sight and began to follow the person. When Leo reached the corner the figure had turned, he heard two voices; one youthful sounding and the other that of an older man.

The younger man’s voice had a particular tone, one that Leo had come to recognize. It had a taunting and disrespectful timbre that spoke of mischief afoot.

Carefully peering around the corner, Leo saw that the younger individual wore a jacket emblazoned with the logo of a known street gang. The man to whom he was talking was the figure who carried the walking stick.

He was an elderly gentleman, wearing a suit, coat, and hat, and he was smoking a cigar. Leo had limited knowledge of cigars, but it didn’t have an unpleasant smell, which told him that it probably wasn’t cheap.

The young man removed a pack of cigarettes from his jacket pocket and tapped one out of the pack. “You did say you had a light.”

“Of course, Jax,” the elderly man said, reaching into an interior pocket of his coat. He produced a gold lighter, which he handed to the young man.

Apparently the conversation Leo had heard was the pair introducing themselves. If there was one thing Leo knew, it was that the exchange of names had only been cordial from the elderly man’s point of view. Jax, no last name, had a hidden agenda in accosting the other man, and it wasn’t because he simply needed a light.

After applying flame to his cigarette, Jax took a deep drag and then exhaled the smoke, directly into the other man’s face. The elderly man coughed and a corner of Jax’s mouth lifted in clear amusement.

“Thanks, old timer,” Jax said.

“You are very welcome,” the elderly man said. Holding out his hand, he added, “If you’ll return the lighter, I’ll be on my way.”

“This? This lighter?” Jax asked, holding it up. When the elderly man nodded and reached for the lighter, Jax pulled it away. “Wasn’t it a gift?”

“No it was not,” the elderly man replied quite firmly, clearly undaunted by the larger, younger man. “I would like for you to return it now.”

Jax chuckled. “What are you gonna do if I keep it? Huh? Gonna tackle me and take it? Gonna yell for the cops?”

Leo could see that the elderly man had begun shaking, but it was more from anger than from fright. He made a grab for the lighter, but Jax held it high above his head and gave the elderly man a shove. The elderly man stumbled backwards, but used his stick to keep himself upright.

Still laughing, Jax snatched the walking stick out of the other man’s hand. Before Jax got the chance to give him another shove, Leo moved.

He streaked across the sidewalk so quickly that Jax, still focused on the elderly man, never saw him coming. Jumping high, Leo kicked Jax directly in the center of his chest, slamming him to the ground. When Jax started to sit up, Leo punched him in the mouth and knocked him out.

Leaning down, Leo retrieved both the gold lighter and the walking stick. Turning to the elderly man, he braced himself for the inevitable cry of alarm.

Instead, the elderly man was looking down at Jax, his brow furrowed. “Should we call someone to get him?” he asked.

“He’ll be all right,” Leo said. He presented the lighter and stick to the man. “I’m sorry he caused you trouble, sir. Here are your things.”

“Thank you,” the elderly man said, taking the lighter and putting it back into his pocket, before leaning on his stick. “I must say, you are very polite. Much more so than that . . . that ruffian.”

“I’m afraid the streets aren’t very safe at this time of the morning,” Leo said. He was watching the man, growing concerned over the fact that he seemed not at all freaked out over coming face-to-face with a giant turtle.

“Young hooligans,” the elderly man said. “They want to reshape the world but have no clue how to go about doing that. It’s the red scare, got all the young people calling for change.”

Leo frowned, disturbed by the shift in the conversation and the reference to something that was long in the past. Up close, he could see that the elderly man’s clothing was old but well made, and that he wore a gold pinky ring with what appeared to be a good sized diamond in its center.

“Do you live nearby?” Leo asked. “I should walk you home.”

“I . . . .” The elderly man stopped at that one word, his brows drawing together. He began looking around him as though he didn’t know where he was. “Caroline will know.”

“Caroline? Is that your . . . wife?” Leo guessed.

“Yep,” the elderly man said brightly. “Been hitched for nigh sixty years. Love of my life. She keeps me straight.”

The man had perked up at the mention of his wife, but the information that he was married and his wife’s first name didn’t get Leo any closer to making certain he got home safely.

“What is your name, sir? I’m called Leonardo,” Leo said.

“Leonardo,” the man repeated. “Not from the fortieth infantry, were you?” he asked, quirking an eye at Leo.

“No, sir,” Leo answered.

“Knew a Leonardo,” the man said. “He was taller than you.”

“And what is your name?” Leo asked again.

“Eh? Oh, my name.” The man saluted. “Corporal John W. Higgins, at your service.”

“It is very nice to meet you, Corporal Higgins,” Leo said politely.

“Retired. Just call me John,” Higgins said.

“Well John, we really should get you off the street and back home,” Leo said. “Where is that exactly?”

Once more John looked around, appearing confused. Leo realized that the man didn’t know where he was.

“Do you have a phone?” Leo asked. “We could call Caroline.”

“Been looking for a phone,” Higgins said. “Ain’t seen one in ages. Guess those hooligans must have ripped them all out. When you do find a phone, it’s always broken.”

Leo guessed that the man was talking about pay phones. With the proliferation of cellular devices, pay phones were a thing of the past. Apparently, the past was where John spent most of his time.

“Perhaps if we checked your wallet, we could find your address,” Leo said.

Higgins stared uncertainly at him. “Want my wallet, do you?”

Taking a step back, Leo raised his hands in a placating manner. “No sir, I don’t. I was hoping you could check your identification for your address.”

After thinking that over for a moment, Higgins nodded and began searching his pockets. He turned them inside out, but the only thing he produced was the gold lighter. “Guess I walked out of the house without my wallet,” Higgins said, chuckling. “Must have been in a hurry.”

Leo took a moment to think. He had no experience with dementia, but guessed that Higgins was suffering from some form of the disorder. If that was the case, then he must have a caretaker. It was doubtful that the man, who appeared to be in his late eighties, was being cared for by a wife who was probably around the same age.

If Higgins had wandered away from home, then it was possible someone was already looking for him. Unfortunately, at this time of the morning, it was also possible that no one had realized yet that he was gone.

Likewise, he couldn’t just stick the man in a cab. Hailing one was out, for obvious reasons, and the man had no money and no idea where he lived.

“Mr. Higgins, I think the best thing we can do is to call the authorities and get someone out here to help you,” Leo said.

“No!” Higgins exclaimed, grabbing onto Leo’s arm. “Don’t call the police. They’ll insist that I get locked up.”

Perplexed, Leo said, “The police won’t lock you up for being lost.”

Higgins released his arm and turned around to start walking away as fast as he could manage. Leo couldn’t just let him go, not in his condition, but he was in a quandary. He could call the police, but then what? There was no telling how long it would take them to respond, and Leo couldn’t remain out in the open for too much longer.

“Mr. Higgins, Mr. Higgins, wait!” Leo called out as he went after the man. Higgins did not stop and Leo was afraid he was going to hurt himself if he tried to maintain his current pace. “Corporal, halt!”

That did the trick. Higgins stopped immediately and spun around, straightening his body as best he could and snapping a crisp salute. “What are your orders, sir?”

“At ease, Corporal,” Leo said, relieved that the man was no longer trying to run away. Maybe the trick was to play into the dementia as best he could until he could get the man some help. “Maintain surveillance at this location while I radio for orders.”

“Yes, sir!” Higgins replied.

Sure that Higgins wouldn’t move for a few minutes, Leo slipped away from him and into the shadows to make his call. He didn’t want the man to see him using the shell cell and becoming confused, or at least more confused than he already was.

Leo placed a quick call to Donatello and explained his situation. Don assured him he would check to see if a Silver Alert had been issued for a John W. Higgins and then get back to him.

The call had taken only a few minutes, but when Leo came back out of hiding, Higgins was no longer where he’d left the man. Leo spotted him a half a block away, crossing the street.

Moving swiftly, Leo caught up to him. “You weren’t supposed to abandon your post, Corporal.”

“I’m hungry,” Higgins said. “There’s a diner around here somewhere. Lady that owns it makes a short stack to die for.”

“It’s too early,” Leo said. “She won’t have opened up yet. Let’s get out of the middle of the street and take our time getting there.”

“You know the place too?” Higgins asked, allowing Leo to guide him back onto the sidewalk.

Leo nodded. “Good coffee, low prices.”

“That’s the one,” Higgins said. “Never expected to run into you in New York City, Leonardo. Last time we talked, you were heading back to Iowa when the damn war ended.”

“I thought I might find better opportunities here,” Leo said.

Higgins snorted. “Yep, lots of folks come to the city trying to find that. Broadway I’m guessing, by the looks of that outfit. Might be better if you didn’t wear it out of the theatre though.”

“I’ll remember that,” Leo said.

At that moment his shell cell beeped. The sound made Higgins jump and he searched around him with eyes wide. “What was that?”

“Just, um, just one of my props,” Leo said. “I forgot to leave it at the theatre.”

“Didn’t think those people liked anyone walking off with those things,” Higgins said, giving Leo a hard look.

“They don’t,” Leo said. “Give me a second to turn it off. I’ll take it back later.”

“Bet you get chewed out,” Higgins said, sounding as though he found the thought amusing. “I need a smoke.”

Leo took only a few steps away from the man this time, keeping one eye on Higgins as he answered Don’s call. Higgins had lost his cigar in the struggle with Jax and was patting his pockets in search of another one, which he wasn’t going to find.

Keeping his voice low, Leo carried on a very brief conversation with his brother. Although short, it was enlightening.

Corporal John W. Higgins was a decorated Korean War veteran. He’d returned to New York City, which was his home town, and made good in the textile business. Before leaving to fight in the war at the ripe old age of nineteen, he had married his high school sweetheart, Caroline Banesly.

They never had any children. Leo was saddened to learn that Caroline had died several years earlier. With the onset of his dementia, Higgins had gone to live in a memory care facility.

Don relayed that Higgins’ absence had been noticed by the staff. They had sent out a Silver Alert for Higgins almost two hours earlier. Leo was amazed when Don told him that the facility was several miles away. He wouldn’t have thought the man could have walked so far.

After informing Donatello of their location, Leo asked him to phone the facility and tell them where to pick up Higgins. Don promised to do so immediately.

Leo tucked his shell cell away and took a moment to study Higgins. The man had given up searching for a cigar and was staring at the street, a far-away expression on his face.

“Good news,” Leo said, returning to the man’s side. “A friend is coming to pick you up.”

Higgins turned a forlorn look on Leo. “From that home, right? They aren’t friends, they’re just people paid to watch me die.”

Leo felt a sharp pang in his heart. “I’m sorry,” he said, having no idea what else to say.

“Oh, that’s not on you, Leonardo,” Higgins said. “I haven’t run across anyone in a long time who was so willing to take the time to help an old man. I appreciate it. Truth is, I’m just waiting for the end. I miss Caroline. Miss her every day, or at least on the days I can remember who she was.”

“That must be hard,” Leo said.

“I think it’s harder to remember,” Higgins said. “Harder thinking of how I used to be young and full of the joy of the adventure. Remembering the war and the friends I lost. Remembering the job I gave so much of my life to, so busy I couldn’t give Caroline the children she wanted. You know what I got for that? A gold lighter with my name engraved on it. The people at the home keep trying to take it from me. They say I’m not allowed to smoke because I might burn the place down.” He shrugged. “I might. Every day there’s less of me in here.”

“What are you going to do?” Leo asked.

“Do?” Higgins squinted at him from beneath bushy eyebrows. “Nothing I can do. World belongs to the young. To you. Do something for me, would you?”

“I’ll try,” Leo said. “What do you want me to do?”

“Enjoy life,” Higgins said, catching hold of Leo’s wrist. “Don’t let anything good pass you by. Keep on fighting the good fight.”

“I will,” Leo promised.

Higgins smiled. “You’ve got quite a punch. Maybe give up the acting career and try professional boxing.”

That made Leo laugh. “I’m not sure I’m ready for that kind of notoriety.”

From the corner of his eye, Leo saw the headlights of an approaching car. It was moving slowly, as though the driver was looking at block numbers. Leo began moving back into the shadows.

“Leaving already?” Higgins asked.

“My family will start to worry about me,” Leo said. “I should get home. It looks like your ride is here.”

“The jailers have caught up to me,” Higgins said, eyes twinkling. “Leonardo, wait up.”

“Yes, John?” Leo paused to wait for the man, who held his closed hand out towards the turtle.

“Take this,” Higgins said, dropping his lighter into Leo’s palm.

“I can’t take . . . .” Leo began.

“Yes you can,” Higgins said. “I got nobody else to give it to. When I pass, they’ll throw me out like the dirty dishwater and fight over anything I leave behind. This is the only thing that means anything to me and I need for you to have it.”

Leo accepted it. “Thank you,” he said sincerely.

“Nope, thank you,” Higgins said. “You’ve restored my faith in man.” He grinned. “Or whatever it is you call yourself. My eyesight ain’t that bad.”

The car came to a stop and a woman stepped out. “Mr. Higgins! We’ve been looking for you for hours. You have no idea how worried we’ve been.”

“Nurse Ratched,” Higgins whispered to Leo and then guffawed at his own joke.

Higgins began walking to meet the woman, his stick tapping against the sidewalk. He managed to place himself in exactly the right position to block curious eyes from spotting the turtle. Whether that was done on purpose or not, Leo couldn’t be sure.

Leo waited in his hiding place as the woman guided Higgins into the car, nodding her head as he told her that he’d been visiting an old war buddy. It was clear that she wasn’t really listening to him.

As Leo headed for the lair, he wondered how long it had been since someone had actually paid real attention to the man. He was glad to have been able to offer that to Higgins, even if their time together was short.

It also made him anxious to get back home. His encounter with the old war hero had made him appreciate even more the family that he had, and all of the memories he shared with them.


End file.
